A Walk to Nowhere

Bella & Sandy (my dogs) took me for our morning walk, and i decided to bring the camera to share some places & things along the way. It was a cold, crisp morning and a deep frost lay everywhere making for a very white morning.

Its always a mystery what Bella & Sandy will turn up, so i did my best to capture some wildlife, absent the opportunity to "sneak up" for a good shot. It didn't take Bella long to get the party started, as she went vertical for a left-over almond hanging in a tree (a left-over almond is called a "mummy" ;)

Bella was run over by a truck a few years ago, her right rear hip and right front paw were crushed and had to undergo major surgery (rear leg ball that used to seat in hip pocket had to be sawn off, and her front paw was rebuilt using wire and plates) ... but that doesn't stop her from getting all out of life, including 5 mile walks; she's an inspiration to anyone who knows this beautiful creature ;)

Of course, Sandy is always around to cause mischief ... she is one of the most annoyingly difficult dogs I have ever owned, and she looks it including those red eyes, pink nose, orange eyebrows & eyelashes, pink dagger claws, and that crocodile mouth & teeth

Our first goal was the Stanislaus River which runs right past our backyard, so off we went. You know you're getting close to the river when you see the larger trees, that flourish due to an abundance of available water

It was still cold, and the frost was being persistent, which made for some interesting pictures. We found this little bench along the way, I imagine it has a lot of stories it could tell ... we'll get back to this bench in a little bit ...

To keep the squirrel population down, owl boxes are put up to encourage natural predation, instead of using poison (we're not quite, but almost an organic farm). This box is currently waiting for new residents, any barn owls looking for a new home in this housing debacle?)

Believe me, this sign is NOT for Bella, but she stood right next to it, so it made for a fun picture

The path continued, and we followed it down to the river, winding through lots of trees, brush, and some stickers ...

Finally, we arrived at our first destination, the Stanislaus River ... the river is undergoing a revival currently, so although it remains dirty from historical low flows, the improvements are dramatic & beneficial ... we commonly see otters, the occasional beaver, salmon & striped bass run through, and there are some other wildlife "wonders" that will remain a secret, except to those who live around here ;)

So, Bella knowing exactly what to do in a moment like this, led the way and Sandy & I followed :

It wasn't too long before our restless legs were bored, so we continued back up the trail we had come down, looking for more adventure. This is where the little bench comes back into the picture, look at it sitting under that majestic Valley Oak, and imagine all the reflection that has taken place while people sit and enjoy the natural surroundings (this picture taken for my friend Nancy Gray ;)

We walked by an old barn , it has to be at least 75 years old:

As we continued on towards the gravel pit & percolation ponds, we came across a beautiful walnut orchard, majestic & young, coming into its prime of producing over a ton or walnuts an acre for well over 40 years

We also found some old, rusted out equipment like this wheelbarrow :

As we approached the gravel pit, Sandy stirred up an incredible bird ... it took to wing, and as it was flying I was able to snap this picture (it's wingspan was approximately 6 feet from wingtip to wingtip)

We continued on, and found a bit of sap running out of an almond tree, reflecting in the morning sunshine :

There was also a prickly pear, it's red beautifully contrasting against the green cactus:

But dreams of walking forever ended as we hit the 3 mile mark, so we turned around and headed home, feeling like 6 miles of beautiful companionship in the middle of nowhere was just what the doctor ordered. We walked back through the almond orchards, now frost-free, and the freshly mowed clover & grass was looking absolutely amazing

In fact, where the orchard had recently been mowed and I had earlier swept in a bunch of walnuts, the birds were having an absolute feast, including this wonderfully beautiful Western Blue Bird, which while being beautiful is obviously not the best for camoflauge, probably explaining why they are so shy & evasive (and LOL ... there are at least nine birds in this picture, including TWO in flight, how many can you find?)

As we approached home, the dogs picked up the pace, heading for their water bowl. I had other things on my mind, knowing a quick 30 minute break on this bad boy was exactly what I needed, so I'll leave you here with this final picture (P.S. its a lemon tree in the background, and she's absolutely loaded with wonderful lemons right now :)

We hope you enjoyed our morning walk as much as we did, and appreciate the pictures taken along the way

Nikon D800

Nikon 55-300mm kit lens

Nikon SB700 flash